By mid-September, Mumbai has already reported over 6,000 malaria cases, around 21% higher than the previous year. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) Health Department attributed the rise to the early monsoon and excessive rainfall. However, experts warn that poor surveillance and testing are also driving the increase.

BMC Falling Short on ABER Target

These gaps came to light during a recent Medical Officer training programme, where officials revealed that the BMC has consistently failed to meet the benchmark for the Annual Blood Examination Rate (ABER), a key malaria control indicator.

ABER measures the percentage of people tested for malaria annually and is calculated by dividing the number of blood slides examined by the mid-year population and multiplying by 100. “A higher

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